Tafsir of Al-Jumu'ah 62:9

(O you who have believed, when the call is made for prayer) that is, when the act of calling for it is performed, meaning the Adhan. The intent behind it—according to what is mentioned in al-Kashshaf—is the Adhan [given] when the Imam sits upon the pulpit. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) had one mu'adhdhin; when he sat on the pulpit, [the mu'adhdhin] would call the Adhan at the door of the mosque. Then, when he (peace and blessings be upon him) descended, he would perform the Iqamah for prayer. Abu Bakr and Umar followed this practice until the time of Uthman, when the people increased and their dwellings became distant, so he added a second mu'adhdhin. He ordered the first call to be made from his house, which was called Zawra. Then, when he sat on the pulpit, the second mu'adhdhin would call the Adhan, and when he descended, he would perform the Iqamah. This was not criticized, and it is in the traditions of the group except for Muslim. When the people increased during the time of Uthman, he added the third call on the Zawra; in a narration by al-Bukhari and Muslim, he added the second call. All are synonymous, and the naming of what is done first as the "second" is because it did not exist in the era of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), but came after it. Calling it the "third" is because the Iqamah is called an Adhan, as in the Hadith: "Between every two Adhans there is a prayer."

The Mufti of the Hanafis in the Sublime Sultanate, the learned Sa'd Allah Chalabi, said: "The authority to which the command applies—that is, the upcoming words of the Exalted: (so hasten)—is the first Adhan, according to the most correct [view] among us, because the notification is achieved through it, not the Adhan in front of the pulpit." It was countered that the first did not exist in the era of the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), as you have heard, so how can it be said that the intent is the first according to the most correct [view]? As for the second not having notification, it does not harm [the matter], for its time is known by estimation. If what was mentioned [the pulpit Adhan] were intended, haste would be required at the first, and selling would be prohibited, yet it is not so.

In the book al-Ahkam, it is narrated from Ibn Umar and al-Hasan regarding the words of the Exalted: (When it is called), etc., that he said: "When the Imam goes out and the mu'adhdhin calls the Adhan, it has been called for prayer." This is the transmitted exegesis, so no consideration is given to any other. Al-Khafaji said this. However, the books of the Hanafis state otherwise. In al-Kanz and its commentary: "Haste and refraining from selling become obligatory at the first Adhan, due to the words of the Exalted: (O you who have believed, when it is called for prayer), and it is considered because the notification is achieved through it. This statement is the correct one in the school." It is said: The consideration is for the second Adhan, which is in front of the pulpit, because there was nothing else in his (the Prophet's) time. This is weak, because if it were considered the limit for hastening, one would not be able to perform the preceding Sunnah prayers or listen, and one might even fear missing the Friday prayer. This is the end [of the discussion], and there is much like it; however, the objection to it is strong, so reflect.

(of Jumu'ah) that is, during it, as in the words of the Exalted: (Show me what they have created of the earth), meaning therein. Abu al-Baqa also allowed that min (of/from) could be for tab'id (partitive). In al-Kashshaf, it is an explanation for idha (when) and an interpretation of it. The apparent [meaning] is that he intended the well-known explanation, so it was objected that a condition of the explanatory min is that it must be valid to carry what follows it upon the explained [term] before it; this is absent here because the whole is not carried upon the part. Furthermore, "day" cannot be intended here as absolute time, for "Friday" is a proper name for the known day; it is not applied to any other by custom, and there is no indication here [for that]. It is said: He intended the linguistic explanation, meaning to clarify that this time is in which day of the days, since there is ambiguity in it, so it reconciles [the views] of it being in the sense of "in" and it being partitive. It is as you see.

Al-Jumu'ah [is pronounced] with the damm on the mim, which is the most eloquent, the most common, and the popular [pronunciation], and the majority recited it as such. Ibn al-Zubayr, Abu Haywah, Ibn Abi 'Ablah, Zayd bin 'Ali, and al-A'mash recited it with the sukun [of the mim]. It is also narrated from Abu 'Amr, and it is the dialect of Tamim. Its fath was mentioned but not recited. Some conveyed the kasr as well. They mentioned that al-Jumu'ah with the damm is like al-Jum'ah with the sukun; its meaning is "the gathered," meaning the day of the gathered group, just as they say duhkah (a laughingstock) for the one laughed at. As for al-Jumu'ah with the fath, its meaning is "the gatherer," meaning the day of the gathering time, just as they say duhkah for someone who laughs a lot. Abu al-Baqa said: Al-Jumu'ah with two dammas and with the sukun of the mim is a verbal noun in the sense of bringing together.

It is said: [The form] with the sukun is in the sense of that in which one is gathered, like a man being duhkah, meaning one who laughs a lot. This is the end [of the discussion]. Friday has become a proper name for the known day of the week. The apparent phrasing of most linguists is that "Jumu'ah" alone, without "day," became a proper name for it, and there is no objection to this. Attributing the general to the specific is permissible and deemed good when the second is hidden, as is the case here, because the naming is a later occurrence, as you will know, if Allah wills; thus, it is not considered poor, like the attribution in "the human Zayd." According to what more than one person said, the Arabs used to call Friday 'Arubah. It is said: It is a generic proper noun used with and without al- (the). It is said: al- is necessary. Al-Khafaji said: The first is more correct.

In al-Nihayah by Ibn al-Athir: "'Arubah is an ancient name for Friday, and it is as if it is not Arabic. It is said: Day of 'Arubah and Day of the 'Arubah. The most eloquent is not to prefix it with al-." This is the end [of the discussion]. That which he assumed—that it is not Arabic—is asserted by the abridger of the book al-Tadhil wa al-Takmil concerning what has been used from foreign vocabulary, Jamal al-Din Abdullah bin Ahmad, known as al-Shishi, stating: "'Arubah, indefinite and definite, is Friday; it is a Syriac name, arabized." Then he said: Al-Suhayli said: "The meaning of 'Arubah is mercy, according to what reached us from some scholars." This is strange, so let it be noted.

As for the first person to name it Jumu'ah, it is said: Ka'b bin Lu'ayy. Abd al-Razzaq, Abd bin Humayd, and Ibn al-Mundhir recorded from Ibn Sirin, who said: "The people of Medina gathered before the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) arrived and before the Friday [prayer] was revealed. The Ansar said: 'The Jews have a day they gather in every seven days, and the Christians have the same. So let us set a day for ourselves to gather, remember Allah the Exalted, and thank Him.' They said: 'Saturday for the Jews and Sunday for the Christians; set it for the day of 'Arubah.' They used to call Friday by that name. They gathered to As'ad bin Zurarah, who led them in two units of prayer that day and reminded them, so they called it al-Jumu'ah when they gathered to him. He slaughtered a sheep for them, and they ate lunch and dinner from it, and that was for their common folk. Then Allah the Exalted revealed afterward: (O you who have believed, when it is called for prayer)..." The fact that this As'ad was the first to gather [the people] is also narrated from others besides Ibn Sirin. Abu Dawud, Ibn Majah, Ibn Hibban, and al-Bayhaqi recorded from Abd al-Rahman bin Ka'b that his father, whenever he heard the call on Friday, would pray for mercy on As'ad bin Zurarah. I said: "O father, what is it about your seeking forgiveness for As'ad bin Zurarah whenever you hear the Adhan for Friday?" He said: "Because he was the first to gather us in the Naqi' al-Khadamat from the Harrah of Bani Bayadah." I said: "How many were you that day?" He said: "Forty men." The apparent meaning of Ibn Sirin's words, "Then Allah the Exalted revealed in that regard after (O you who have believed), etc.," is that As'ad established the Friday [prayer] before it was obligatory. Likewise is his statement: "The people of Medina gathered before the Prophet arrived and before the Friday [prayer] was revealed." In al-Fath al-Qadir, it is explicitly stated. The scholar Ibn Hajar said in Tuhfat al-Muhtaj: "It was made obligatory, meaning the Friday prayer, in Makkah, but we did not establish it due to a lack of numbers, or because its sign is public appearance, and he (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) was in hiding there. The first to establish it in Medina before the migration was As'ad bin Zurarah in a village a mile from Medina." This is the end [of the discussion]. Perhaps it was made obligatory, then the verse was revealed, like the Wudu for prayer; it was first made obligatory in Makkah along with prayer, then its verse was revealed. However, this is challenged by what Ibn Majah recorded from Jabir that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) delivered a sermon and said: "Indeed, Allah has made Jumu'ah obligatory upon you in this station of mine, in this day of mine, in this month of mine, in this year of mine, until the Day of Resurrection. Whoever leaves it out of disregard for it or denial of it, may Allah not unite his affairs nor bless his matters. Let it be known that there is no prayer for him, no Zakat, no Hajj, no fast, and no piety for him until he repents; and whoever repents, Allah will accept his repentance." The apparent [implication] is that this sermon was in Medina; indeed, the report implies it was long after the migration, as his (peace and blessings be upon him) statement, "there is no Hajj for him," implies that Hajj was already obligatory then. Although there is disagreement as to when it became obligatory—it is said before the migration, or in the first year of it, or the second, and so on until the tenth—they said that the most correct view is that it was made obligatory in the sixth year. Either this undermines the authenticity of the Hadith, or it is said that its import is the obligation of Jumu'ah until the Day of Resurrection—meaning, with this condition [of public establishment]. It is said that what occurred before its obligation was not subject to this constraint. Furthermore, what was mentioned before about As'ad being the first to gather in Medina is contradicted by what al-Tabarani recorded from Abu Mas'ud al-Ansari, who said: "The first of the emigrants to arrive in Medina was Mus'ab bin 'Umayr, and he was the first to gather them there on Friday; he gathered them before the Messenger of Allah arrived, and they were twelve men."

Al-Bukhari recorded something similar to it, according to what al-Suyuti conveyed, and that was by his (peace and blessings be upon him) command. Al-Daraqutni recorded from Ibn Abbas that he said: "The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) gave the Adhan for Jumu'ah before he migrated, but he could not gather in Makkah. So he wrote to Mus'ab bin 'Umayr: 'Now then, look for the day the Jews gather for the Zabur, and gather your women and children. When the day tilts from its middle, at the zenith on Friday, draw near to Allah the Exalted with two units of prayer.' He said: 'So he was the first to gather [people] until the Prophet arrived in Medina and gathered at the time of Zawal (zenith) of the noon prayer and made it public.'" Perhaps that which points to As'ad being the first to gather is more established than these reports, or they are reconciled by [saying] that As'ad was the first to establish it without a command from him (peace and blessings be upon him), as the report of Ibn Sirin indicates—and Ibn al-Humam explicitly stated this—and Mus'ab was the first to establish it by his command (peace and blessings be upon him), or that Mus'ab was the first to establish it in the city itself, and As'ad was the first to establish it in a village near the city. Their saying "in the city" is loose. The Hafiz Ibn Hajar said: "The two Hadiths are reconciled by [saying] that As'ad was a leader and Mus'ab was an Imam." This is as you see. None of the reports I have encountered explicitly mention the sermon—which is one of the conditions—in regard to who established it before the migration in Medina. It is as if the report of Ibn Sirin hints at it by saying: "and he reminded them." It might be said: Friday prayer is a legal reality for a prayer that fulfills all conditions; so whenever it is said that so-and-so was the first to pray Jumu'ah, it implies the fulfillment of the conditions. But it is very far-fetched that what occurred from As'ad (may Allah be pleased with him)—even if it was before its obligation—fulfilled what is known today as the conditions. Furthermore, I do not know if As'ad prayed the noon prayer that day or sufficed with the two units he prayed instead of it. And on the premise of sufficiency, how was that permissible for him without his (peace and blessings be upon him) command? The furthest one might think is that the Ansar knew of the obligation of Jumu'ah, knew its conditions, and that it sufficed in place of the noon prayer, so they wanted to perform it before they were commanded specifically. So their elite encouraged their commoners in the best way, and they came to As'ad and he led them in prayer. This is very contrary to the apparent meaning, so reflect, and Allah the Exalted is the Granter of Success. As for what occurred regarding his (peace and blessings be upon him) prayer, it is narrated that when he arrived in Medina migrating, he descended at Quba among the Bani 'Amr bin 'Awf and stayed there Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, and he established their mosque. Then he went out on Friday to Medina, and the Friday prayer caught him among the Bani Salim bin 'Awf in the center of a valley they had, so he gave a sermon and prayed the Jumu'ah. This was the first Friday he prayed (peace and blessings be upon him). Some said: This day was called "Friday" because Adam (peace be upon him) gathered with Eve on earth on that day. It is said: Because the creation of Adam (peace be upon him) was completed on that day. This is similar to what Sa'id bin Mansur and Ibn Marduyah recorded from Abu Hurayrah, who said: "I said: 'O Prophet of Allah, why was Friday named so?' He said: 'Because the clay of your father Adam (peace be upon him) was gathered in it,'" the report. This suggests that the naming was before Ka'b bin Lu'ayy. The angels call it the "Day of Increase" on the Day of Resurrection, because Allah the Exalted manifests Himself in it to the people of Paradise and gives them what no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and has not crossed the heart of a human, as in a Hadith recorded by Ibn Abi Shaybah from Anas in a marfu' (elevated) manner. It is among the best days. In a report recorded by many, including Imam Ahmad and Ibn Majah, from Abu Lubabah bin Abd al-Mundhir in a marfu' manner: "Friday is the master of days and is greater before Allah the Exalted than the day of al-Fitr and the day of al-Adha. In it, Adam was created, he was sent down to the earth, he died, and there is the hour of response—meaning for supplication, provided it is not for something forbidden—and the Hour [of Resurrection] will be established. In the report of al-Tabarani, it [mentions] he entered Paradise and he exited it. Ibn Hibban authenticated the report: 'The sun does not rise or set on a day better than Friday.' In a report of Muslim: 'In it, Adam was created, he was entered into Paradise, he was brought out of it, and in it the Hour will be established. It is the best day upon which the sun has risen.' The report is authentic: 'And in it he was repented to, and in it he died.'"

Ahmad concluded from the reports of Muslim and Ibn Hibban that it is better even than the Day of 'Arafah, and many of the Hanbalis favored its night over the Night of Decree (Laylat al-Qadr). It is said: Both are refuted by the fact that those two have special evidences, so they take precedence. There is disagreement regarding the determination of the hour of response on that day. According to Abu Burdah, it is when the Imam stands in prayer until he finishes it. According to al-Hasan, it is at the zenith of the sun. According to al-Sha'bi, it is from the time selling is prohibited until it is permitted. According to 'Aishah, it is when the caller calls for prayer. In a marfu' Hadith recorded by Ibn Abi Shaybah from Kathir bin Abdullah al-Muzani, it is from the time the prayer is performed until it is finished. According to Abu Umamah, "I hope that the hour which is in Friday is one of these hours: when the mu'adhdhin calls the Adhan, or when the Imam sits on the pulpit, or at the time of the Iqamah." According to Tawus and Mujahid, it is after the Asr. It is said otherwise, and the determination of the majority is not authentic. Allah the Exalted has hidden it just as He, Glory be to Him, hid the Greatest Name, the Night of Decree, and others, for a wisdom that is not hidden.

(So hasten to the remembrance of Allah) that is, walk toward it without excess in speed. It came in the Hadith [that one should] contrast "hastening" with "walking," and that this is one of the specificities of Friday. The Six [compilers] recorded in their books from Abu Salamah, from the Hadith of Abu Hurayrah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: "When the prayer is performed, do not come to it while you are hastening; come to it while you are walking, and upon you is tranquility. What you catch, pray; and what you miss, complete." The intent of "remembrance of Allah" is the sermon and the prayer. It is clear that the intent is the prayer. It is permissible that the intent is the sermon, and it is—according to what is said—a metaphor of applying a part to the whole, like applying it to prayer, or because the sermon is like a place for it. It is said: The remembrance is general, including the known sermon and things like the Tasbih. They used the verse as evidence for Abu Hanifah (may Allah be pleased with him) that it suffices for the Friday sermon—which is a condition for its validity—to be the Dhikr (remembrance) absolutely; a long one is not conditioned, and its minimum is the amount of the Tashahhud, as his two companions stipulated. They clarified this by stating that He, the Exalted, mentioned "remembrance" without distinguishing between it being long—called a sermon—or a Dhikr—not called a sermon. Thus, the condition is the more general Dhikr [according to the principle of the] categorical, except that it is transmitted from him (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) that he chose one of the two [forms], which is the Dhikr called the "sermon," and persisted in it. Thus, it is as if that were obligatory or Sunnah, not that it is the condition whose equivalent does not suffice, since it would not be an explanation of the lack of ambiguity in the term "remembrance." The Shafi'is stipulate two sermons, and they have pillars in their view, and they used the traditions as evidence for that. Regardless, the command to hasten indicates obligation.

This was used as evidence for the obligation of Jumu'ah, as the command to hasten to the remembrance of Allah the Exalted was ordered upon the call for prayer. If the intent is the prayer or the sermon, it is clear. Likewise, if the intent is the sermon, because the obligation to hasten to a condition—which is intended for something else—is a branch of the obligation of that other thing. Do you not see that whoever is not obligated to perform the prayer is not obligated to hasten to Jumu'ah by consensus? Thus, its obligation is established by the Sunnah and consensus. Some Hanafis explicitly stated that it is a more confirmed obligation than the noon prayer, and that its denier is an unbeliever, and it is an individual obligation. It is said that it is a collective obligation, but this is an irregular [opinion]. In a Hadith recorded by Abu Dawud, and al-Nawawi said it is on the conditions of the two Sheikhs: "Jumu'ah is a right and an obligation upon every Muslim in a congregation, except four: a slave, a woman, a child, or a sick person."

They reached a consensus on the condition of a [specific] number for it, due to this report and others. The statement of al-Qashani, that it is valid with one, is not considered, as in the commentary of al-Muhadhdhab. However, they disagreed on its amount based on various opinions: First, that it is two—one of them being the Imam—which is the opinion of al-Nakh'i, al-Hasan bin Salih, and Dawud. Second, three, including the Imam; it is narrated from al-Awza'i and Abu Thawr, and from Abu Yusuf and Muhammad, and al-Rafi'i and others narrated it from the old opinion of al-Shafi'i. Third, four, one of them being the Imam; Abu Hanifah, al-Thawri, and al-Layth said this, and Ibn al-Mundhir narrated it from al-Awza'i and Abu Thawr and chose it, and it is narrated in the commentary of al-Muhadhdhab from Muhammad, and the author of al-Talkhis narrated it as an opinion of al-Shafi'i in the old [school]. Fourth, seven; narrated from 'Ikrimah. Fifth, nine; narrated from Rabi'ah. Sixth, twelve; in a narration from Rabi'ah, and al-Mawardi narrated it from Muhammad, al-Zuhri, and al-Awza'i. Seventh, thirteen, one of them the Imam; narrated from Ishaq bin Rahwayh. Eighth, twenty; narrated by Ibn Habib from Malik. Ninth, thirty; in a narration from Malik. Tenth, forty, one of them the Imam; 'Ubayd Allah bin 'Abd Allah bin 'Utbah and Imam al-Shafi'i in the new [school] said this, and it is the famous [opinion] from Imam Ahmad, and one of the two opinions narrated from 'Umar bin 'Abd al-'Aziz. Eleventh, fifty; in the other narration from him. Twelfth, eighty; narrated by al-Maziri. Thirteenth, a large gathering without a constraint; this is the school of Malik, for it is famous that he said: "A specific number is not a condition, rather a congregation is a condition where a village can reside, trade can occur among them, and it is not valid with three, four, and the like."

The Hafiz Ibn Hajar said in the commentary of al-Bukhari: "Perhaps this school is the most likely of the schools from the perspective of evidence." I say: The most likely is the school of Imam Abu Hanifah. Al-Muzani, who is among the major students of al-Shafi'i, chose it, and it is the choice of al-Suyuti. The aspect of his choice, along with the evidence for most of the opinions with their pros and cons, is mentioned in a treatise of his titled Daw' al-Sham'ah fi 'Adad al-Jumu'ah. Were it not for the lengthening of the discourse, we would have mentioned its summary. Whoever wants that, let him return to it so that the truth of the matter may appear to him by its light.

Most of the Companions and the successors recited it as famdu (proceed/go), and it was understood as an interpretation based on the fact that "hastening" is intended as speeding up in walking; it was not considered Quran because it contradicts the text of the Mushaf upon which there is consensus. (And leave the trade) that is, abandon the transaction. Selling is a metaphor for that, so it includes selling, buying, renting, and other transactions, or it points to everything else by the implication of the text. Perhaps that is better. The command is for obligation; thus, all of that is prohibited. Indeed, it is narrated from 'Ata' the prohibition of permissible play, that a man comes to his wife, and that he writes a book as well.

Some expressed it as makruh (disliked), and it was understood as karahat al-tahrim (prohibitive dislike). The statement of al-Akmal in the commentary of al-Manar that the dislike is tanzih (avoidance) is rejected. It seems to be taken from the claim of the Qadi al-Asbijani that the command in the verse is for recommendation, which is a void claim according to most Imams. The general body of scholars is on the validity of the sale, even if it is prohibited, similar to what they said regarding prayer in a usurped garment or in usurped land.

Ibn al-'Arabi said: "It is corrupt." Mujahid expressed it with his words: "It is rejected." The time of prohibition continues until the Imam finishes the prayer. Its beginning is either the time of the sermon Adhan—narrated from al-Zuhri, and a group held this view—or the first time of the zenith, and that is narrated from 'Ata', al-Dahhak, and al-Hasan. The apparent [meaning] is that those commanded to leave the trade are those commanded to hasten to the prayer.

Abd bin Humayd recorded from Abd al-Rahman bin al-Qasim: He entered to his family on Friday, and they had a perfume seller they were trading with, so they bought from him. Al-Qasim went out to Jumu'ah and found that the Imam had already come out. When he returned, he ordered them to cancel the sale. The apparent [implication] is the prohibition of selling when the call for prayer is made, even for those upon whom it is not obligatory. The apparent [implication] is the prohibition of selling and buying in the state of hastening.

In al-Siraj al-Wahhaj, it is explicitly stated that it is not [prohibited] if it does not distract him. (That is better for you) that is, the aforementioned [act] of hastening to the remembrance of Allah the Exalted and leaving the trade is more beneficial than engaging in trade, for the benefit of the hereafter is greater and more lasting. It is said: More beneficial than that and than leaving the haste. The establishment of the basis of benefit for the preferred [object] in consideration of it being worldly benefit does not indicate that the command is for recommendation and desirability rather than for firmness and obligation, as is not hidden. (If you only knew) the true good and evil, or if you were of the people of knowledge, treating the act as a requisite.